The Big Kiss-Off: Dinner at MUA, Oakland

Okay, so I'm a sucker for a really good dining experience (we have reservations for Pican soon and I'm so looking forward to it)! From Boulevard (my normal lunchtime FAV in SF) to Havana in Alameda on a no-cook weeknight--my BF and I are always looking for new and exciting places to try out. And, I often take clients out to lunch; referring them to other places as we have fun food discussions highlighting Bay Area fare.

Unfortunately, I have to give Mua only 2 stars. Service: This is the most important element of a restaurant for me. I mean, on my many excursions to Cosmopolitan , Palio, Aqua and Boulevard (where they know my name) I'm certain it was not difficult to add any drinks I've ordered at the bar to my bill once I was seated to have a meal. So why was it so hard to do here?

My good friend and co-worker introduced me to this place by taking me on a weekday right after work for happy hour . We ordered drinks at the bar and proceeded to go upstairs. A big guy (very sweet), who I think was the manager, told "us upstairs is closed" and that we could have a seat anywhere we wanted. We chose a small table in the corner to chit chat and for the most part things started out normally. The waitress brought us a menu and we looked it over while talking--enthused about our selections (mac & cheese, fries and grilled artichoke).

The food came out, we ordered a second round of drinks, and we ate-- all normal right?

As we came to the close of our meal, we noticed the couple next to us very abrasively gesturing and telling the waitress to "get the check" though she was asking us if we were ready to close out for the evening. We said sure, the check would be fine and I realized my card was at the bar. We asked if she could close out my card at the bar, and bring it to the table so we could split the bill--the waitress said okay and walked to the bar, then came back and asked again to be sure she understood. We explained again, and she said okay; then she came back after a minute or two and very abruptly said "can you just get your own check, because I have other tables".

My friend and I both agreed that her behavior was odd and rude when we were nice and friendly, while our neighbors were clearly not. Funny, she "hopped to" when they asked for service (and with all of three trips over there, she could have closed the bill out twice over by the time she concluded we weren't worth it). Needless to say we observed our right to calculate the appropriate tip. Note: I always tip 20-25%, even if the service is so-so. But we decided that we would exercise our right to let the waitress know that her behavior was inappropriate and unsatisfactory.

Fast-forward and Friday night I went back w/ my BF as I like to give new places a second chance; it was packed and we were seated in about 20 minutes (a bit long to wait but okay). We had a great experience with a male server who was attentive, suggested the tuna and kept us smiling the whole time--we didn't have to look for him and he was on it! The food was awesome OMG! The brussel sprouts were on, the tuna was great and the lamb cheeks were pretty authentic. I said "yes to second chances"!

Fast-forward further and last night we met my friend and co-worker there with high hopes for another good experience. We had drinks at the bar and were seated thereafter. We were chatting and having a good time when suddenly; the waitress from my first time there walks up; and the first words out of her mouth were "so I guess you were mad last time"? WTF? I looked up and said "excuse me"? and she proceeded to have a very inappropriate and unprofessional conversation with me about my right to use my dollars the way I saw fit, then commented "but you came back"? This was a bit over the top; even for my mild mannered BF who usually loves everyone. It's really too bad...and the food was horrible this time, as I'm guessing she put in a request to serve us the "don't-come-back" special. And the management team and other staff sat looking at us as if we did something wrong.

Bottom line: train your servers--or better yet hire ones that know the ropes; people are willing to spend, $50, $60 even $100 for a good meal without guilt as long as it's worth it--and they will come back and be loyal customers if you only exercise a bit of customer service. It's not professional and reflects poorly on the management when a server has a license to be a complete ass because someone on staff thinks she's cute.